News | Newyddion

Pickles The Hypocrite Caught Red Handed

June 14, 20130

Eric Pickles, the Tory Communities Secretary, has been branded a hypocrite for calling on his constituents to install fire saving life sprinklers in their homes – despite criticising a Welsh law which mandates that all new homes be installed with sprinklers.

Ann Jones AM, who has successfully steered the Domestic Fire Safety (Wales) Measure through the Assembly, has criticised Eric Pickles for his blatant hypocrisy. Mr Pickles has repeatedly cited fire sprinklers as excessive “red tape” which is holding back the construction industry in Wales.

However, previously Mr Pickles has backed sprinklers in his home constituency of Brentwood and Ongar, saying: “The facts show that here in Essex people are most likely to lose their lives in a fire in their own home or in their car than at work and that many of the deaths that occur in residential fires could be prevented if a domestic sprinkler system was in operation.

“The cost of these units is relatively low but time after time it has been proved that domestic sprinkler systems can save lives and that is a price worth paying.”